Games People Play
by exduck
Summary: An evening of murder, wine and frustration


Title:** Games People Play**

**Author: E (random-ship)  
**Show:** Castle  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Pairing:** Castle/Beckett  
**Spoilers:** none  
**A/N:Written for a challenge using the prompt 'a night in'. More a/n at the end of story. A big thanks to 'angelus2hot' for helping with the beta**  
**Summary**: An evening of murder, wine and frustration (set after season 4)**

Side by side they sat in Kate's living room as night fell, examining the small makeshift murder board spread out on the coffee table in front of them.

It wasn't a common practice for her, preferring to leave murder outside her home whenever possible, but he had convinced her that they could solve this just between the two of them. Even boasting that he could figure out who the killer was before her. She had taken his bet and now after several glasses of wine and even more failed conclusions, she was wishing she hadn't let him talk her into it.

With a frustrated groan, Kate ran her hands through her hair and closed her eyes, as she flopped back into the couch cushions.

"Giving up?" He asked, patting her thigh. " I told you I could solve this before you did."

"Just taking a minute." She told him, through closed lids. Trying to ignore the heat of his large hand on her leg. "And don't sound so smug about it, you are just as stumped as I am to who the killer is."

"I am not." He began, his fingertips absently rubbing circles on her thigh as he gave it more thought. "Well, okay maybe I am, but I've got some ideas formulating."

"Yes, I can feel that." She smiled, opening one eye to him.

"About the case." Castle laughed, refilling her wine glass with his free hand. "Here, have some more wine, it will help you relax. Maybe you'll even have a breakthrough and actually solve this before me."

"And maybe I would have a better chance of winning our bet, if you would stop plying me with alcohol and distracting me... in other ways."

"Why detective..." He began his hand purposely sliding further up her thigh, a pleased smile spreading across his face as he caught the slight gasp she tried to hide. " In what way am I distracting you?"

"How about you come here and I will show you." She told him grabbing a handful of his shirt and pulling him down toward her.

"Now who is trying to win the bet?" He asked, catching himself. Using his arms to keep his weight off her and keep enough distance between their bodies for him to be able to still think straight.

"Oh, the bet is still on," She began, arching up and giving a quick nip to his lower lip even as her fingers nimbly began unbuttoning his shirt. "But I do think maybe a break is in order."

"I thoug..." His voice caught as her hands moved beneath the fabric of his now open shirt, blazing a trail on his bare skin. " I thought you liked it when I'm deducing."

"I like it when you are solving. This is just frustrating... on several levels."

"But we are so close."

"Not nearly close enough." she countered, sliding her fingers into his hair, around the back of his head and guiding his mouth down to hers. Any fight he had left, disappeared as he opened his mouth to hers, kissing her deeply. Lowering himself, he felt the full length of her body beneath him and was lost.

Coming up for air and feeling slightly dizzy, he panted, "So... just a little break you say?"

"Just to clear our minds." She whispered against the hollow of his throat.

"Oh, I think all the blood as already cleared out of my mind."

" And as I said before... Yes, I can feel that." She repeated, with a laugh.

She moved to kiss him again and saw him hesitate. It was so slight that with anyone else she probably wouldn't even have caught it. But for better or worse, Richard Castle was not just anyone else and she knew how his mind worked a bit too well.

"Really?" She asked.

"Sorry..." he began, "believe me, I could not be more sorry, but I need to know."

Rolling her eyes at him, she pushed him back and scooped up her wine glass.

"Fine. Deduce."

"I'll make it up to you." He promised, already back to examining the board.

"Oh, you can count on it." She agreed, watching him over the rim of her wine glass and smiled despite herself. Although she complained, she really did love watching him formulate his theories, even the crazy ones. She was pretty sure there wouldn't be any zombies or aliens thrown out as possible suspects on this one, but with his delightfully imaginative mind, she could never fully rule it out either.

She was halfway though her glass of wine and feeling the warm glow of it in her belly when she saw it. The look. That look. The unmistakable look he got in his eyes, when all the pieces started to fall together. Without warning that warm glow in her belly, ignited and spread. She caught her lower lip between her teeth, watching him formulate, totally focused on the pictures before him "It has to be... the rest of them all had alibis... it's the only thing that makes sense..."

He looked up, his eyes locking on hers, seeing that familiar look... the one that caused his heart to race and hers right along with it.

"I know who the murderer is." He smiled.

Reaching out, his hands found her waist, lifting her to him in one quick motion. His body molded tightly into hers as she found herself straddling his lap, hands on either side of his face, asking, "Okay, who did it?"

He leaned in, feeling her hands slide into his hair as he brushed his lips along her throat and up to her ear, whispering, "Are you sure you want me to tell you? If I'm right, I win."

She swallowed hard, before roughly pulling him back to face her and telling him "Oh, I'm pretty sure we are looking at a win-win situation on this one."

"So that's a yes?" He smiled.

"Tell me."

"After careful consideration... " He teased, slowly unbuttoning her shirt as he spoke.

"Castle." she warned at his obvious game of dragging this out in order to torture her.

"And weighing all my many options..." he continued, his hands moving slowly across her bare skin, finding the small of her back and pulling her even in more snugly into his lap.

She closed her eyes momentarily at the sensation of his skin against hers, before reminding him, "I have ways of making you talk."

Pleased with himself he continued the taunting game he was playing and told her, "Once I had eliminated all the other suspects, it was just a matter of figuring out the killer had to beeeee" He squeaked out his last word as he felt her hand slide down in between them, deciding to take measures into her own hands, so to speak.

"Tell Me." She demanded, with a raised eyebrow.

"It was Professor Plum... In the conservatory... With the candlestick." He managed to stammer out in one breathless gasp. Before adding in a strangled rasp, "I win." even as his eyes glazed over.

"Yes Castle, you win." She conceded, as her mouth came down hard against his. Using her position to push him back onto the couch, breaking from their tangled embrace only long enough to breathlessly add, " And for the record, I am never playing Clue with you again."

A/N: This idea came to me after I saw someone online had come up with a way to play the game 'Clue' with only 2 players. Haven't tried it yet, but the idea of these two playing amused me.


End file.
